The Laws of Motion - Animated!

Back in 1687 Newton first published the three laws of motion.  They describe the relationship between the forces acting on a body and its motion due to those forces. They have been expressed in many different ways over nearly three centuries, so here is yet another way of doing so – in animated form. I for one reckon that Newton would approve!

This is the work of Lindsay Gilmour, who was responsible for the visual development of this film from concept to final render. I really like the clean lines of the animation and the interpolation of the human hand in to the action to show us which law is being described.  Of course, when the heroes of the story are Earl the Brick and Freddy the Feather (sound like London gangsters of the 1960s!) it is even more marvelous! Science and art in tandem again!

The Biology of Risk Taking: Why Do Teenage Boys Put Themselves in Danger?

If you have ever wondered why teenage boys act so, well, stupidly, then this should give you an insight.  Created by Stefane Lefort for an exhibition about risk in La Cité des Sciences et de l'industrie de Paris, it follows young Maxine who is enjoying a day out at the pool but wants to impress some girls. Should he leap off the top of the diving platform or retreat back to his friends, tail between his legs?

The biological processes around risk are set in motion, starting in his brain.  Will the fight or flight impulse kick in and advise on discretion being the better part of valor or will Maxine jump? As he is a teenager you can guess what happens but this is a fascinating insight in to how, in so many ways, as a teenager he just can’t help himself.

Thursday

Thursday? What day would this be then?  On any other Thursday life in the city goes on as usual, as illustrated in this animated short by Matthias Hoegg of Not To Scale.

Lives interconnect in unusual ways in this city where technology and nature strive for something similar yet so different.  Thursday was recognized with a BAFTA Nomination in 2011

An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump

This is one of my favorite paintings – each and every time I go back to it I seem to be able to discover something new – or just simply get lost in its amazing detail. It was executed by Joseph Wright of Derby in 1768 and today you may think of it as a fairly traditional composition.  In its day, however, it was ground breaking.  It is still considered by many to be one of the masterpieces of British art.

See the reverence on the faces of those caught in time?  This scene of veneration was in praise of science and until this point the awe depicted here would have been strictly reserved for scenes of historical or religious significance.  Wright was really breaking down the boundaries here, but despite this his style was never widely imitated despite the fact that he was held in great admiration by contemporary artists.

The painting shows a natural philosopher – there he is center left looking at you, inviting your participation.  He is recreating an earlier experiment by Robert Boyle in which a bird is deprived of air.  The reactions of the onlookers represent a whole gamut of human emotions. One poor girl cannot even look on, so upset is she for the bird - her father tries to explain the nature of the experiment while the younger sister can bring herself to look at the experiment, but what a look of concern she has on her face!

Others regard the experiment with an air of scientific curiosity while the gentleman on the right seems to be lost in his own contemplations, perhaps on the transience of life and of our power over it.  The two young lovers on the left, however, only seem to have eyes for each other and are, it seems, unconcerned about the fate of the bird. The whole scene is beautifully composed and the choice of representing it in candlelight an absolute masterstroke.

What do you think? asks the natural philosopher.  Should I continue with the experiment and kill the bird or halt it, saving the bird while denying ourselves new scientific knowledge?  Which avenue would you chose?

Image Credit Wikimedia

Rocketboy

This is an interesting animation which follows a boy’s obsession with rockets and rocketry from youth to adulthood.  I have to admit I may not have followed its every nuance but I found it a fascinating watch nonetheless and it has a good home on Kuriositas! Rocketboy was directed by Minhyuk Jang of 2GREY, a design and motion studio based in Seoul, Korea.

Famous Fred

Famous Fred is based Posy Simmonds' enchanting story, Fred, a family moggy by day and an astounding superstar by night.  It features the voices of Lenny Henry and Tom Courtenay.

However, a case of cat flu threatens to cut short Fred’s musical career.  A lovely animation for this time of year, Famous Fred won the1997 BAFTA for Best Children's Animation.

Vhils: Graffiti Art as Architectural Archaeology

Disintegrating walls and peeling posters may not be everyone’s cup of tea. In fact I would venture that to most people they are a rather dispiriting sign of urban decay.  Yet to one artist the sight of crumbling architecture and aged billboards posted one atop another atop another are a creative spur. Vhils creates art not by adding but by taking away.

Image Credit Flickr User Lord Jim

Image Credit Flickr User Salotte

Vhils, born Alexandre Fartos in 1987 in Portugal, chips, slices, cuts and hammers his remarkable art out of the sides of buildings.  It started when he was a youth in Lisbon.  Portugal’s recent history meant that billboards advertising expensive consumer goods could be pasted directly over posters of socialist ideals left over from the 1974 revolution in a layer which could, depending on the amount of posters, centimeters thick.